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Estelle Fletcher
Estelle Fletcher (15 February 1928 - 2 May 2005) was a Brunanter singer famous in the 1950s and 1960s. Biography Early life Fletcher was born in Coral Gables, Florida to a Cuban mother and an American father. Fletcher started singing from the age of nine and in 1948 was recording some material; much of it had Cuban influences but was mostly based on jazz. Most record companies she went to did not want to release her material, finding it unsuitable for their tastes. After two years of bad luck, she decided to move to Brunant, where she had an aunt in Koningstad. Early career Fletcher moved to Koningstad in 1951 and was able to get in contact with Cuban-Brunanter songwriter Luis Benitez, who had her audition for a song he was writing. Impressed by her performance, Benitez had her record We're off to Cuba with Stereophone Records, where he worked. This would be the song that launched her career. It was a hit that summer and Brunanters danced to it all the time. Personal life Fletcher was romantically linked to Luis Benitez during the time they worked together. She married Benitez in 1953, soon after his divorce from his first wife. They would have one son together, Jose Benitez, in 1955. They divorced in 1956 due in a large part to his infidelity and other drinking problems. In the late 1950s she became involved with Barzuna singer Jose Campanes. The two had a daughter out of marriage, which shocked many traditional Brunanters.There were indeed attempts by traditional and Church groups to ban her music from the radio. In 1959 she married Campanes and they had three children: Maria (1958), Juan (1960) and Carmanza (1963). Campanes shockingly died in a Barzona Libre attack, as he was against their violent meansHe was only the fourth casualty of BL attacks.. Fletcher remarried in 1981 to Anthony Grant, a younger man. The couple separated in 1987. Since then, she has largely remained in private and has rarely given concerts, the last one being in 1990. Discography Singles and EPs *''We're off to Cuba'' (1952) *''We're off to Cuba'' (1953) *''Stardust'' (1958) *''Someone Like You'' (1958) *''Honey Dear'' (1960) *''Down by Jamaica'' (1961)This was an attempt at re-creating the success of We're off to Cuba, but Jamaica was an unsuccessful song, only charting at 57 on the Hit Parade charts and it didn't chart at all in the US. *''Christmas in Paradise'' (1963) *''Baby it's Cold Outside'' (1963)Sung with Bert Fransen *''Baby it's Cold Outside'' (1980) We're off to Cuba 1952.png|''We're off to Cuba'' (1952) We're off to Cuba 1953.png|''We're Off To Cuba'' (1953) Estelle Fletcher Sings in Barzuna.png|''Estelle Fletcher Sings in Barzuna'' (1957) Starlight.png|''Starlight'' (1958) Someone Like You.png|''Someone Like You'' (1958) Silently.png|"Silently" (1961) Moonbeams in Carrara.png|''Moonbeams in Carrara'' (1962) Retrospective.png|''Retrospective'' (1976) Albums *''A touch of Cuba'' (1953) *''At the Pink Flamingo'' (1955) *''Estelle Fletcher and the Palace Grand Band'' (1958) *''The Blues'' (1962) *''Christmas in Paradise'' (1963) *''Jazz and Bossa'' (1964) *''Greatest Hits'' (1968) *''The Last Temptress'' (1970)Martin Carlotti and Carlos Banderas wrote the music for the album, and Fletcher sung most of the songs (except for instrumental pieces). *''Easy Listening'' (1972) *''Cuba and Other Hits'' (1978) *''Estelle Fletcher: The Definitive Collection'' (2007) Estelle Fletcher and the Palace Grand Band.png|''Estelle Fletcher and the Palace Grand Band'' (1958) The Blues.png|''The Blues'' (1962) The Great Estelle.png|''The Great Estelle'' (1988) 50 Years of Song.png|''50 Years of Song'' (2003) Notes Category:1928 births Category:Dead people Category:Musicians Category:Estelle Fletcher Category:Stereophone Records